Letters from Children
by Katra Winner
Summary: The quest is over. Kagome has a choice to make, and leaves a letter to her family to tell why. Letter two up.
1. from the daughter

{Letters from Children}

{chapter one – from the daughter}

Okay, I write this time with a new story and a one-shot begun – plus the one-shot _Majo's Son_ – which you'll at least read if you love me.  ^^  Anyway, as the summary says, the quest is over.  It's been three years and Inuyasha and Kagome are a 'couple'.  Mated in name, you might say.  There will be five more 'letters', and an epilogue.  I'll try and get them out fast, but there are just too damn many ideas floating around up there.  Um...this is PG-13 for the epilogue, so...yeah.  Enjoy.  Review, I order you!!!

~~~

            Kagome sighed as she began to write the letter. "You don't have to, you know," Inuyasha said softly.  

            "Yes I do," Kagome whispered. "She...they deserve to know."

            "But it's more painful for you this way."

            "This way I can live out my life without regrets.  If I didn't, I'd worry till the day I died."

            Inuyasha shook his head slightly. "I hope you're right."

            "I am."

~~~

To Mama: I realize that this is unfair for you.  I'm leaving, and I didn't even talk to you about it.  I'm writing to say that I won't be coming back.  Ever.  I'm going to live in the Sengoku Jidai with my "family" there.  It was my choice – they actually tried to convince me to not stay here; Inuyasha especially.  But I would feel best by his side, and he belongs here.  I can't get into why, exactly, this is his place, though.  I've promised to let him tell his side of the story so that this will be a true account of reasons.  I love you, still.  But...I need to be with him.  With all of them.  

Inuyasha...he claimed me as his mate recently.  That was when I knew there was no going back.  I think I told you something about him giving up on Kikyou.  I killed her, I'm sad to say.  But she was a mononoke, and her small amount of soul returned to me.  Inuyasha waited until that was resolved.  He was planning on telling her to give up and go peacefully, but it was impossible.  It hurt, Mama.  I wanted her to be happy inside of me, and I had to force her down.  We were all crying.  I didn't think a corpse could cry.  Inuyasha, either.  

So wish your daughter luck on her wedding day – which is coming up soon, by the way.  I can't wait!  I'm nervous.  Remember that I love you.  

To Jii-chan: This must be a low blow for you.  I'm leaving the shrine to marry a youkai.  Technically we're already married, but don't worry.  We haven't done anything yet.  Look, most of what I need to say has already been said, and my hand's getting tired.  I do love you.  But like I've said before, I belong with Inuyasha.  No matter what.  And...I don't think he could be anywhere else but here, in the Sengoku Jidai.  

Over the years (has it really been three!?) I've grown to love this place and its inhabitants.  I can't imagine not hearing their cheerful greetings, swimming and bathing in the now-familiar stream, or running through the forest.  There's a tranquility there that I can't seem to find no matter how hard I search in our time.  I think that I belong there as well.  Here I'm a center of the village.  I have a job now, can you believe it?  I'm the teacher.  It's incredible.  I think that this town will be the first in all of Nihon to learn English!  

Thank you for everything.  I love you.  (and I do _not_ have arthritis!!!! : p)

To Souta: What can I say?  You've known about Inuyasha and I longer than Mama and Jii-chan (gomen for that one, Mama).  I think that you always knew it would come to this.  I know that you're eleven now, so you might understand, however faintly, that I need to be with him and my family there.  I'm needed there, as well as wanted.  Like I said, I'm the teacher.  That's why I've been buying so many schoolbooks recently; I'm not good enough with all the different languages to teach them without assistance.  I hope the three bagfuls will be enough.  I've also bought enough paper, notebooks, pens, pencils, ink brushes, and ink to last us three lifetimes.  

Speaking of lifetimes...I'm going to have a very long one.  You see, we've decided to use the Shikon no Tama to keep all of us but Shippou alive.  As long as Inuyasha is alive, I'm alive.  Sango and Miroku will live as long as I do.  We will all age at the same rate.  That means that Inuyasha had better not get killed!   : )  We decided on this because Inuyasha didn't want me to change at all.  So, we put our heads together and came up with that!  Aren't we so smart?  This is goodbye forever, you know.  Don't forget your big sister.  I don't know what you're going to say this time to explain my disappearance but I'm glad I don't have to come up with it.  

Love you, little bro.  Keep up with your studies – don't turn into a C student like your neechan.  And do you know that this makes Inuyasha your oniichan?  

            My Stuff: Buyo stays with all of you, but sell the rest of my stuff.  Souta, you get my CD player.  I thought of taking it with me, but realized batteries have a few hundred years to go before they'll be a) invented and b) in AA size.  Silly me.  My clothes (what I didn't take...) are to be sold and used to buy a pretty dress for Mama.  Jii-chan, I copied down the restraint spell that the priestess here used on Inuyasha.  It might be good for you.  Anything you like or want to stay in the family, keep.  I don't care.  Except for all that stuff Houjou gave me – that's Jii-chan's now.  

            I love you all.  Forever.  

~~~

            Finally, Kagome set down her pen, massaging her wrist.  Inuyasha kissed her palm. "Now you're done."

            "You still have your letter to write, though." The hanyou gave a low growl in response.  

            "Tell me again why I have to write a letter to the woman who will probably hate me for stealing her little girl away." Inuyasha wrapped his arms around Kagome's waist, burying his face in her hair.  

            "It was your idea!" Kagome protested. 

            "I don't like it anymore, so it's your idea now."

            She swatted him lightly. "You're writing a letter."

            "I know.  I'm just going to drag my heels along through the whole process."

            "No, you don't get it.  You are _writing a letter_.  As in, writing it yourself."

            "Bitch," he grumbled, affectionately. Kagome grinned mischievously, then wriggled out of his embrace. "Kagome, what are you-"

            "Osuwari." 

            SPLAT!! 

"DAMMIT KAGOME!!!!! "  Giggle.  Giggle.  

~~~

            This is a little mini-series of letters.  Hope you like it.  Before you ask, yes Inuyasha and Kagome are a couple.  And yes Kagome is 18.  For those wondering, this recent little trend of non-anti-Kikyou is for my friend Akane-dono.  Yes, Laz, I still hate her but I'm tired of arguing with Akane-dono over it so I'll just have to take out my Kikyou-rage with the Spy Team on Brandi's MB ^^;

            This is just an idle little pastime, TPttH I'll continue writing.  

            FEEDBACK.  NOW.  I don't care whether it's email or a review, I JUST NEED FEEDBACK.

            -Katra Winner


	2. from the son

{Letters from Children}

{chapter two – from the son}

~~~

            "I still can't believe I'm writing this."

            "Believe it, dog-boy."

            "What am I supposed to say?  I'm the big bad youkai that's taking her baby girl away."

            "Wuss."

            "When it comes to your mother, damn straight."

            "Just write the letter."

            "What am I supposed to _say_?"

            "Whatever comes easiest."

~~~

            To Mrs. Higurashi: I understand if you want to hurt me.  I understand if you want to hate me.  But that doesn't stop me from sincerely hoping you don't.  I love your daughter, my Kagome, more than anything.  More than my own life.  I realize that I can't have made a very good impression on you and your family – dragging poor Kagome off practically every week to hunt in strange country.  I doubt that she ever shared with you just how much danger we've been in, especially recently.  It's been hard because most youkai don't like me simply because my father fell in love with my mother and they say he died trying to protect me and her.  They don't take kindly to me having claimed a human as my life-mate.  See, my father left everything to me, and some of the high mucky mucks expected me to just sit down and breed with one of their pampered daughters.  I more or less told them to fuck off and let me do what I want.  That didn't go over very well.

            Kagome said I'd have to explain why I don't just come and live with you.  It's simple and a bit dumb, even.  I owe the people here a great debt.  They accepted me again a bit reluctantly fifty-three years ago, and even after I practically destroyed their village; they forgave me when I was reawakened.  Look, I don't know how to say this, but over the years – from the time I came of age (fifteen human years) and until now – that small seemingly insignificant section of Musashi's Domain I claimed as my own.  As Inuyasha's Forest.  It's my territory, and my duty is to protect and keep in line those who live on that territory.  That's the simple and sad truth.  The price for having my own territory is to make my mate, my love, give up her world.  I suppose I'm lucky in that I haven't had to take much responsibility for claiming that territory over fifty years ago.  But now I have to, and Kagome wants to rule with me.

            So there are my reasons.  In the end...it's going to be about 500 years for us until we see you.  Maybe five or ten years for you.  Please understand.

            To Mr. Higurashi, Sr.: Yeah, try and purify me.  Use as many prayers and rituals as you want – if it makes you feel better.  I will warn you though – she belongs to me.  I know that sounds so incredibly possessive, but hell, it's the truth.  Kagome had the chance to stay with you.  I told her that if she wanted, I'd stay and guard my territory for 500 years.  Then, when she was nineteen, I would find her and formally complete the mating ceremony – which, you'll be interested to know, is an actual ceremony that will bond us forever.  She denied that violently, saying that she didn't want me to be alone for that long.  I think it's partially my fault, because I really would like to spend an extra 500 years with her.  

            Whether the blame should be placed on her, me, or nobody in particular is a question that'll never be truly answered.  The choice is yours on who you want to hate for this.  I don't want you to hate Kagome, though.  I also don't want you to hate Kikyou.  I know that a large part of Kagome staying with us is Kikyou's fault, as she didn't want to trust me fifty years ago.  But...the real blame is mine.  I fell in love with Kagome, and acted like your typical high-ranking youkai.  I strutted around like I owned her and somehow, my odd methods worked and she loves me now too.  She was willing to fight Kikyou for me, and taint her own innocence by killing the mononoke that claimed to be my old love, just to prove that she was mine and I hers.  I do love her more than I ever loved Kikyou and I want you to know that I'll take good care of her.

            To Souta: This really sucks for you, little kid.  You've got the coolest sister in any time period, and now I'm snatching her away from you for an amount of time that could stretch on forever.  I could write on forever and ever about why I need Kagome at my side, but I don't want to bore you.  Eventually, I hope to claim a territory as big as my father's was.  I want Kagome to have the best things in this time, as she comes from a time where everything is so much more advanced.  I want you to know that Kagome's something like a legend here.  I know that you knowing that might be like a knife in the side.  I know what that feels like.  Growing up it was Sesshoumaru this and Sesshoumaru that.  But I know you're going to be special, too.  

            Now you can tell all your friends that your big brother-in-law is a hanyou.  Lucky you.  I don't know what you think of me now, but I hope that you, at least, can sympathize with me.  I want to be with Kagome forever.  You can't understand that when she's by my side, everything just is better.  It got to the point about two years ago that I just couldn't sleep unless I had Kagome in my arms, or nearby.  You knew that I slept in your sister's room every night for about a year now whenever she was there, in your time.  Thanks for not telling your mother or your grandfather.  I owe you one, little man.  If your mother found out Kagome was sharing her bed with me, I think I would have been killed violently.  This is stretching on and on and on and on...you get the point.  Just...thanks, I guess.  Thank you and...well...sorry.  

            Hope you understand, and I'll see you in a while.  I'm still not sure how long we'll be for you.  It will be about 500 years for us, but…

            My Legacy: Kagome said in your time, it's customary to write something called a will leaving behind what goes to who and all that shit.  There's a tradition among youkai like that called the "Legacy".  If you know that you'll be gone for a long time, you leave a Legacy to a few select people that passes on things more important that possessions.  I'm still not sure how well it'll work since I'm only half youkai, but I hope it does.  So I pass on my strength, speed, and endurance to Souta so that he can be a soccer player – whatever that is.  Um...any magical ability to the senior Higurashi, and a link to a small mental note for Mrs. Higurashi – a link that will let her see everything we've gone through.  

            Thank you.  I suppose.

~~~

            Inuyasha scowled over at Kagome. "Happy now?"

            "Thrilled."

            "Good." Inuyasha wrapped his arms around her, moving to nibble delicately on the curve of her ear. "When are you dropping the letters off?"

            "Soon."

            "When?"

            "I don't know.  It's hard.  Leaving the letters behind is like...saying that it's positive that I'm never going back."

            "Don't say never," Inuyasha said sharply. "You'll see them."

            "In 500 years, that is," Kagome mumbled.

            "If...you're having second thoughts...you could...just wait for me, I guess.  I could just do what I have to for that time," Inuyasha said hesitantly.

            "No," Kagome retorted quickly. "I want to be with you.  I need to be with you.  It's just hard."

            "Are the others writing letters?" Inuyasha asked, carefully changing the subject.  

            "Yeah."

            "I love you, you know that?"

            "Of course."

~~~

            Whew.  Two chapters in one day!  (The Path to the Heart chapter six, Letters from Children chapter two)  How inspiring Stupid Bowl Sunday is.  

            Or not.  ; )  Sorry this took an extra day to get up.  

            Also, it has come to my attention that Kylara's story "Tadaima" and chapter one of Letters from Children resemble each other highly.  I read "Tadaima" and reviewed it.  I did not mean to copy Kylara.  I guess this is a very ironical situation, as I made a big stink over Crystalite's story "Awakening Power" resembling TPttH.  Kylara, however, has more class than I and simply emailed me kindly.  

            Review.  Please!!!

            -Katra Winner


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